Cheep Sentiments

I like to say I’m a “meat and potatoes” writer. What I mean by that is, I’m not a snob. There are creatives out there who only want to work on the big name brands with the big fat budgets and the easy sell. But I like getting my hands dirty on smaller projects and non-glamorous but über-challenging jobs. At the end of the day, if I’ve helped my clients solve their communication challenges and made their headaches go away, I’ve done fantastic work.

Word of the day: Kerplop. Say it three times fast. Are you smiling? You’re welcome.

Copywriter PSA of the Day: Using ellipses (…) at the end of sentences has become rampant these days. The problem is, ellipses indicate that you haven’t really thought through what you’re saying. Their grammatical function is to mark a hesitant or incomplete thought. And if you aren’t really sure about your message, you might wanna… you know… not say it.

It pretty much never pays to be a jerk. Being a dork, however, can be pretty lucrative.

Advertising is as much art as it is science. Metrics are great, but you can’t quantify oomph.

Remember the old Kellogg’s Cereal Variety Pack? I try to be like that. I’ve cultivated a variety of skillsets and experience that I can apply as needed. One project might need branding chops, while another needs my promotional skills or web content mojo. And sometimes you just want Cap’n Crunch.

Why hire a professional copywriter when you’ve got folks on staff who can write? 1) You get greater efficiency. I can usually do in two hours what might take your employees all day. 2) Focus. Your marketing team has other fish to fry. 3), Perspective. I combine 21 years of broad experience with an outsider’s view on your business. And D) I’ll make the process fun.

Message platforms aren’t sexy. They aren’t even very much fun. They’re simply indispensible.

All brain and no heart makes for very dull marketing.

Today at Chick Creative: Bawk bawk bawk.

Y’all know you can stop putting double spaces after a period now, right? Word processing software automatically spaces it for you. Adding extra spaces in there now just makes your paragraphs all swiss-cheesy.

People are Talking

Martha was my creative partner at Leo Burnett Technology Group. She was an incredible person to work with everyday. Not only did she write smart copy, but she was a great collaborator. She didn’t just hand off her copy, she stayed with you throughout the life of the project, making sure the copy and visuals worked well together to best tell the story. If I needed her to give me a 6-letter word instead of a 10-letter word to make the design work, she was there to save the day. If I was swamped under a deadline and needed to hole up in my office to get it done, she would be my protector by putting funny notes on the door warning people not to bother the art director.

She took an interest in what makes me people happy and knew how to get a good laugh out of someone when they need it most. I’ll never forget the day she was paging me over the intercom to let me know to check the San Diego Zoo PandaCam immediately because there was cuteness happening. Basically, she’s talented, smart, funny and a great person to have on your team. She is a great writer, concepter, coworker, voice of reason, and have you heard her sing?!

Oh and I don’t know if she still does this, but she used to feed the art directors Mentos. Fresh breath always makes the work better, as does Martha. I would certainly welcome the opportunity to work with her again should the occasion present itself to us. Hire her for your copy and voice talent needs. Do it now!

I knew the moment I met Martha she was the real deal. She concepts like nobody’s business. She can take the most sleepy content and make it dazzle. Martha keeps up with a diverse client list, having worked with just about every industry imaginable. She’s personable, approachable and isn’t afraid to speak up when something’s amiss or needs to sell in an idea to opinionated clients. And if given the opportunity, let her flex her vocals for you. No one can sing Elvis Presley’s “Burning Love” better, or with more passion, then Martha. You’ll be reaching for that AquaNet.

Working with Martha Chang on my social media content was exactly what I needed! After going through that process with Martha, I was able to clearly define what I wanted to say (and more importantly, DIDN’T want to say) which allowed me to schedule content via blog posts, social media, and newsletter outlets for the next 3 quarters!!! I can’t even express how grateful I am that this very important part of my business model is working on all cylinders. Would highly recommend her services.

Martha is one of the smartest copywriters I’ve ever worked with. She is extremely strategic in her approach and is always mindful of the big picture when working on any project. Her knowledge of the high-tech category is particularly impressive. Martha is a pro’s pro. She turns out high quality work very quickly, not needing much guidance to “get it right” the first time. But what helps separate Martha from most is her presentation skills. She does an excellent job setting up the work, then performs as much as presents it, infusing her fun and engaging personality in the process. The client ends up enjoying Martha as much as her work. A valuable quality when trying to sell new ideas. Martha is also into organic food, but I try not to hold that against her.

Martha is what agencies dream of–a smart, talented writer who can create, sell and produce advertising that clients love. All while keeping the people around her happy. She’s a pro. She’s seen it all and done it all–twice. And probably produced the spot, sang in the jingle and did the voiceover. If there is such a thing as a Renaissance Woman, her name is Martha.

It’s not an easy task to take a large data set of information, index it for unrelated user tasks, make it searchable and findable, and wrap a marketing story around the whole thing that seamlessly ties together all substories and increases total site conversions. Martha Chang can do it. Martha is always able to maintain the big marketing picture to create effective brand driven and web friendly copy while managing the gory details of information architecture and user experience. Martha is a rare breed of copywriter and content strategist and the key asset in my most successful web projects.

If you are looking for a topnotch writer that is detail-oriented, who will meet every deadline and who will provide the best product for you or your company, Martha is the writer for you. Not only does she produce award-winning and effective writing and concepting, she immerses herself in the culture of the company she is working with so that she understands it from the inside out. She worked to learn everything she could about our clients’ industries and she continually educated herself to help make the work better. And, in learning about our industry, she has also been an excellent source for providing ‘outside of the box’ thinking for client problem-solving. Martha is an excellent writer and resource. She is not only a colleague but a dear friend I call on often for help.”

If you’re looking for a writer with serious chops, Martha is your gal. Over the years, she and I have worked together on numerous projects which were highly technical and had to be produced under extremely tight deadlines. And Martha never, ever failed to deliver.

She’s able to take complex subjects and translate them into unique concepts with engaging and compelling copy that really deliver results. From brochures, to direct marketing to advertising, Martha knows her stuff. And she inherently understands how to leverage social media in a way that never really ceases to amaze me.

To top off all of her talents, Martha’s a real delight to work with and genuinely nice person. Every time I have the opportunity to work with her, I know my project will simply be so much better due to her involvement. She’s always my first choice for projects and I whole-heartedly recommend her.

Smart. Versatile. Fast. Fun. What more can you say about the best there is? Whatever you need done, Martha is the one you need to do it. Her ability to digest the (often very-lacking) inputs of a project, and ask the smart questions to augment everyone’s knowledge on the matter are second-to-none. Actually they are second-to-only-one thing: her ability to turn those inputs into results-first concepts and copy. It is so pleasant and rewarding to work with someone who refuses to ever make things muddier, only clearer… and better. Martha is what a creative soul should be.

Martha is one of those writers who just gets it. No matter the client, service, project, whatever–she consistently comes up with solid ideas and copy that makes perfect sense. She’s a good juggler, does her homework to know what she’s selling, and on top of all that, she’s just a cool chick to be around.

Martha is a sharp, smart, prolific writer. She asks all the right questions, is extremely organized and always delivers more than expected. Combine that with a great personality and absolutely no ego, and you have a very rare creative writer. She’s a pleasure to work with on every project.

Over the years, we’ve tapped Martha’s talents many times. Freelance, on-staff, on site, remote and everything in between. She’s off and running before many writers are out of the gate. Martha takes projects with the most mundane, most expected solutions and elevates them. Gives them personality. That’s what you hope you get from a writer.

This business has a way of feeding cynicism. The longer you’re in it, the more calloused you can become. Not Martha. For her, every journey is a new one. And the enthusiasm she puts into it shows.

Martha is my go to person for copy writing. She is smart, fast and well priced. She has saved me so many times in the past that I can’t even count. Her concepting skills are unmatched and her ability to absorb large amounts of information and then translate it into words that even I understand is amazing. I work with her any chance I get.

Martha worked at Kolar as a “permanent” freelance writer. An extremely strategic thinker, Martha is also quite prolific. She is a quick study of any subject from hi-tech to hi-touch. She is detailed, insightful, dependable and has an incredible attitude. Martha would be an asset to any company.

Martha brings moxie and character to any assignment. Her strategy can sell servers to mortgages, microchips to gift cards. She is as much consultant, as she is copywriter. Once you bring Martha on a new account, she will quickly research her way to resident expert. Clients and creative teams request her work for its quality and energy. I’ve been lucky to stand in the room and watch this magic firsthand. You’ve got to see it to believe it. With Martha, opportunity is everywhere.